Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery

Statement of Significance

The Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery is the only monastery of its Kind and tradition in Australia, where Buddhism is taught and practiced according to the correct principles of its ancient charter. It continues to maintain an active and influential patronage in Thailand.

Physical Description

A set of buildings resembling both Late 20lh Century Immigrants Nostalgic (Meditation Hall, entry gate) and Late 20m Century Organic (kitchen/dining, guest accommodation, meditation room). All the buildings are in harmony with the natural and landscaped surroundings, following natural lines and gradations; and sharing the same or similar brick tones and so appear relatively unintrusive. The grounds are a mix of both native and exotic flora and give the monastery high aesthetic value. The Meditation Hall is a single storey auditory building of brick and tile, with a dramatic high pitched gable roof and a generous gabled porch with a timber infill featuring a Buddhist motif. The brick pillars and substantial roof area give the building a very grounded, heavy appearance, and combined with very small almost obscured windows under the verandah, gives the building a sense of privacy. The kitchen/dining hall is a two storey brick building, featuring a colourbond hipped broken back roof forming a verandah on the upper level supported by timber posts and accessed by an external staircase. The dining hall is on the second storey. The meditation room is a single storey brick and colourbond building with a gable roof and skillion verandah on two sides supported by brick pillars. The monastery is enclosed by a stone wall, in which the ashes of deceased local Buddhists are incarcerated. The entry to the monastery features decorative wrought iron gates which incorporate the name of the monastery. The gales are supported on stone pillars topped with a tiled gable hood. There are 20 small huts scattered over the grounds as guest accommodation.

History

From 1981 to 1991. Buddhism was the fastest growing religion in Australia, and is the largest non-Christian denomination. In 1983, western monks of the Thai forest meditation tradition (Theravada) were invited by the Buddhist Society of Western Australia to establish a monastery near Perth. The site selected is 60 km from Perth in the Darling Ranges near Serpentine and consists of 97 acres (39ha) of undulating land overlooking the Indian Ocean. A tree was presented by the Sinhalese Buddhists and has been planted in the monastery (about 50m from Kingsbury Dve). The tree derived from a cutting from a tree in Sri Lanka which dates back to around the time of the historical Buddha, in the 6th Century BC, making it the oldest historical tree in the world. The main buildings consist of a Meditation Hall, a kitchen/dining hall, and a small meditation room. There are also 20 A-frame huts scattered through the grounds for guest accommodation. The lifestyle followed by the monks is one where they live close to nature away from urban environments in simplicity, silence and solitude. As with this tradition, the monks have few responsibilities and share few communal activities. Although secluded, the monastery is not representative of a cloistered religion. The monastery is deliberately not self-sufficient and relies on donations for material requirements and lay Buddhists to attend to most domestic chores, such as cooking and serving dinner. The grounds are therefore not cultivated but more of a sanctuary where the monks, and guests, can live in harmony with nature and meditate. The monastery is also an official educational institution recognised by the government of Western Australia. Within the wall which surrounds the monastery are the ashes of deceased local Buddhists. In 1987, the monastery received official sanctification from invested royal senior monks in Thailand for conducting higher ordinations (upasampada). A number of recent new ordinands include individuals born in Western Australia. In 1991, a fire devastated most of the grounds. The grounds have regenerated but there is a total fire and smoking ban. [Information from Jim Taylor (PhD, FAAS), Curtin University, Cultural Heritage Values: Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery, Serpentine', 30/5/1988; and information booklet of the Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery.]

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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